That Face in my Dreams
by Tomoenarayelle
Summary: Everyone dreams, but only the truly destined dream of someone special. Neji finds out soon that someone close to him lives in a different environment than he once thought. Can he protect her from someone that she holds dear to her? A Neji/Tenten fanfic.
1. Chapter One: Hurry

**Disclaimer: Naruto series and characters belong to Masashi Kishimoto. The plot, though, is mine.**

_**That Face in my Dreams**_

_TomoenaRayelle_

_**Chapter One: Vanishing Into the Rain**_

This is probably my favourite time of day. The clock just ticks the hours away as I sit outside in the courtyard.

Meditating with my uncle ended three hours ago, but I don't want to go back inside yet. The sun just started setting, and everything is calm. Exactly as I like it.

Hinata is gone with Naruto, thank goodness. The girl's finally just got the guts to ask the oaf out. I'm rather happy she's not around. Truth is, I don't quite feel safe when she's in the house un-supervised. She'd probably invite a thief right into the house and serve him tea! She's much too shy and kind.

Well, now she's gone and the house is mine. I can look up at the sky without having my name called every few minutes by Hinata's little sister, my uncle or anybody else. I have time. Time to breath. Time to relax. Time to think...

Time to be **bored**.

That happens to me alot. I think that the time is perfect to enjoy the simple pleasures in life, when suddenly boredom strikes. Not to worry though. When I get bored, I just dream.

Dream... of her.

I slap my own forehead. This is the third time this week! Why can't I get her out of my head? "Cursed puberty!" I yell out loud.I sit up and let my hair fall in my face. I really _should_ get it cut... but my hair always lets me cover my face when I feel like hiding. Hiding that stupid smile I have everytime I think of... well... her.

Oh great, this is becoming a habit. I've got to get a grip. I don't want to become a drooling idiot who's brain melts at the thought of a female. Then again... she doesn't seem like those other girls that go around in skimpy clothes like Yamanaka Ino does. Those are the type that seem to get stared at the most. She's... different... special...

"Gaah! Curse it all!" I scream, letting myself fall back down and roll to the side.

I hear the chime of the grandfather clock in the parlour. That normally means the clock struck seven. Seven... seven... why does that number seem so important right now?

"Shoot!" I bolt forwards and run into the house. "I'm supposed to meet Lee and Tenten at the training grounds at seven!"

I quickly grabbed my weapons bag and run out the door, sliding it shut before I go. Rushing through the streets of Konoha, I dodge the merchants and villagers as best as I can. A road block right ahead. Darn. I leap onto the rooftops of the stores and houses to try to buy time. I pass over alleys and scare away some birds as I jump from roof to roof. I see an orange blurr from the corner of my eye and stop. Naruto is beside Hinata, walking through the crowds. That's alright, but he's holding her hand, and that gets me ticked.

Bah, I'll scare and threaten him to take good care of her later, right now I'm running late.

---

I arrive at training ground number eight at five past seven. Lee finds it most "unyouthful of a young person" such as myself to arrive so late. Five minutes! Just five minutes and he gives me a tenminute lecture on punctiality. It's kind of funny though, how he tries to look serious. His huge eyebrows and buggy eyes make him look like a character from a child's cartoon. I hadn't realized I thought that outloud until Lee went slightly pink.

Tenten is five or six yards away, crippled over, laughing so hard she'll be exhausted before training even starts.

I try hard to keep myself looking indifferent, but I can't help the slight smirk that tugs at my lip. I don't know which is funnier, Lee's embarrassment or Tenten's laughing fit. I just turn away and hide my face in my long hair.

We begin actual training fifteen minutes later. We fight in the evening to train our eyes and instinct, or so says Guy-sensei. With the Byakugan, I can see everything and instinct isn't something necessary, but I have to abide by it for Lee and Tenten's sake. Although, I think it's practical just because the sun irritates my eyes.

We organize our training this way: Lee and Tenten fight first and the winner gets to confront me. After that, the loser of the first fight fights me and we take a break, then start again. We give eachother tips and tricks to improve our styles.

I must say that I most enjoy fighting Tenten. Sure, I go easy on her, but she doesn't shout out stuff such as "the power of youthfulness!" or "my fist of the springtime of youth!". Quite frankly, Lee can get very annoying. Granted, he's talented, but he still can't beat me.

Sometimes I wonder what he would have become if he hadn't have had the operation to fix up his spinal cord. I could see him as a bakery salesman crying out "These pastries are made with the essence of youth!" or "This pie is made from the fruits of justice!".

Tenten is also coming to be a pretty good kunoichi. Her weapons are always well shot and her techniques are becoming more and more accurate and swift.

After a good evening of sparring, we all rest and gaze up at the stars.

"Yosh! I feel pumped tonight! I'm going to run 500 laps around Konoha before going home!" cried out Lee as he leapt up and ran towards the village. I shake my head and wonder if he'll even manage.

Tenten sighed and sat up. "That guy is really hopeless, isn't he?" she asks.

I shrug. "It's his way of feeling like he's getting somewhere."

Tenten nods and brings her knees up to her chin. She stares down at me. I don't particularly want to look her in the eyes since she might feel like she's annoying me and say sorry again. That's kind of sad about Tenten though. She may look all tomboy and strong, but she's just a shy girl when she's not around weapons or in a fight.

I'll never tell her, but I find it cute.

---

After chatting about something involving the Tokido championships in Wave country, Tenten decides it's time to go home. I agree. If I try to estimate the time according to the moon, I'll say it's past midnight. Tenten turns to leave, but then I realize something.

"There's been a group of muggers going around town, I'll walk you home." I offered, trying to sound as indifferent as possible.

"That's alright, I can handle them if they attack me..." she explained. Oops. Forgot about that.

"Yeah... but... but you never know." I stammered, feeling the heat rushing to my face.

Tenten stared for a minute, but smiled. "Hyuuga Neji, if I didn't know you better, I'd think you _**want **_to walk me home." she giggles.

Crap.

"But you **do** know me better, right?" I pointed out, suppressing the urge to jump off the nearest cliff. She paused and thought about this for a moment.

"Yeah, I suppose I do." she laughed.

Woo... saved.

Tenten leads the way and I try my best to memorize the path that leads to her house. Now that I think about it, I realize I never even knew where her house was. She never actually talks about her family either. We arrive at the corner of a long road near the center of the village. There are alot of apartment buildings. I never thought Tenten was the kind to live in an apartment. She stops and looks at me with a grateful smile on her face.

"You can just leave me here, Neji. Thanks a bunch!" she says softly.

"Is this your home?" I inquire, pointing at the apartment building to my left.

"Yeah, that's it." she answers, facing the said building.

"Oh... well, see you tomorrow." I say awkwardly.

She nods and smiles. "Yeah, see ya tomorrow!"

I watch her walk on the path that leads her to the front door. She turned back and waved. I waved back, slightly less enthousiastically. I sighed as soon as she passed the door. The walk home would be long and lonely.

---

I dreamed of her again last night. Well, I don't really know _who_ she is. Truth is, all I really see in my dreams is a blurry face. That girl... she seems so different, yet familiar. When I _**do**_ dream of her, I see her in the streets, walking among the crowds and smiling as people pass her by. She occasionally stops by a young child and has pleasant conversations. She then ruffles the young one's hair and walks off, laughing in a clear, light, almost refreshing voice.

Once or twice I actually came very close to figuring out who she was by racking my memories, but as soon as the idea came, it left.

On mornings like these, I like to lie in bed and try to discover the girl's identity while my conscience screams at me to quit it and focus on the upcoming day. After an hour or so, I decide to obey that noisy conscience and finally get up. Lazing around in bed isn't too bad, especially when you actually **wake** up at the crack of dawn. I don't sleep much...

I walk into the kitchen and Hinata's already there, attempting to cook something. Once in a while she gets it right and we eat something nice. But mostly, we just end up heating up some instant breakfast thing like oatmeal.

Hinata is a so-so chef and her cooking depends on her nervousness. It's rather simple to interpret; when Naruto's on her mind, the breakfast is burnt to a crisp. When she doesn't feel sure of herself, the food is edible, but tasteless. When she feels calm and determined (rarely so), the breakfast is delicious.

By the time she notices I'm there, I'm already seated at the table and staring out the window.

"D-did you sleep well, N-Neji nii-san?" she asked in her unsteady, timid voice.

Breakfast would be tasteless.

---

Hinata's younger sister, Hanabi, lost her last practice kunai the other day. I volunteered to go fetch some more at the market to get out of the house for a while.

You have no idea how boring it can be on Thursdays. With no planned taijutsu, ninjutsu or genjutsu training in the morning, all that's left is sulking in a corner or listening to one of uncle's lengthy stories about the wars. I prefer sulking, but even that gets boring over time.

I spot the merchant selling shinobi weaponry. Konoha being a ninja village, his stocks are huge and he can afford to sell things at a reasonable price, unlike other shops around the continent that sell them more as souvenirs than actual fighting weapons. I choose a couple of the finest, most expensive ones for Hanabi (that's the benefit of having an important, rich family).

Uncle allowed me to purchase a couple for myself, so I take a handful of razor sharp shuriken and a decorative kunai. It was made of good quality steel and had engravings on it's four faces. The metal was so polished I could see my pale eyes in the reflection. I particularly like one of the engraved phrases that read "_The mind's eye is the path to our desires_".

As I read the other inscriptions on the other three faces, a pair of brown eyes peer into mine, less than 4 inches away. I keep my cool, but I can't help but jump ever so slightly.

"Good morning, Tenten." I say as plainly as I can.

She smiles at me. "Good morning Neji-kun!" she greets happily. "I just stopped by Lee's place and found him tied to his bed. Apparently, he really did run 500 laps around Konoha, but didn't bring a sweater or a jacket so he's both burnt out and sick with a cold. Gai-sensei had to strap him to the bed because he didn't want to miss training." she explained, half amused and half annoyed.

I felt the hsmile from the corner of my mouth. It wasn't the first time things like that happen to Lee, but I just can't help thinking it's funny. He's too motivated for his own good. "Then I suppose it'll just be you and me training tonight." I confirmed, replacing my smile by an indifferent expression.

"Yup!" she answers cheerfully. Her glance drifts off to the kunai I'm holding. "Ooh, that's so nice! It's so shiny it looks like silver!" She took it out of my hands and read one of the sentences. "Huh? What's this? _Where one's treasure lies, so does his heart_? Neat." She looks at her watch and hands me back the kunai carefully. "I've got to hurry, see you later!" she calls out, weaving in and out of the crowds, hastily getting to wherever she needs to go.

I shrug. That girl's always rushing around. Where to though, I never bother to ask. I keep watching her go on, until she comes across a little boy.

He's bawling his eyes out and calling for his parents. Tenten crouches down beside him and asks him something. She takes his hand and guides him through the herds of people. Apparently, his mother was looking for her son as well. Once Tenten returned the boy to his family, she ruffles his hair and says her goodbyes, leaving with a smile on her face.

Just like the girl in my dreams...

Oh great, I'm going mad.

---

That evening was rather dreary. An indecisive rainfall kept us from training for more than ten minutes. I suppose it's alright though. Tenten and I sat under a pine tree for cover. Our conversations revolved around Lee's rather odd "my rules" theory. I wasn't really listening though, since I was listening to the silent prickling sound of the rain hitting the ground.

"... though he says Guy-sensei taught him those rules, I still can't help but think that even Guy wouldn't push himself that far..." she continued.

Suddenly, a random question came to me and I blurted it out in the middle of her sentence. "What do you do?"

Tenten stopped and lifted a skeptical eyebrow. "What do I do? What are you talking about?" she asked, perplexed.

"Right..." I mustn't have made much sense. "... what I meant to ask was where do you go when you claim to have to hurry." Tenten's facial expression changed dramatically. Her gaze dropped to her feet and she wiggled her toes nervously. She seemed... tired?

Oh crap... another Hinata.

"I... I have lots of things to do back at home... I just..." she glanced at her watch, then stared at it a little longer, eyes widening. "Oh fudge! I've really got to go Neji." she said hurriedly. Jumping up and running into the rain, she vanishes into the fog, leaving me alone, under the tree, blinking like a dumbstruck idiot. Did I say something wrong? Why did she suddenly run off?

Shikamaru's right, women **are** troublesome.


	2. Chapter Two: The Medic

**Disclaimer: Naruto series and characters belong to Masashi Kishimoto. The plot, though, is mine.**

_**That Face in my Dreams**_

_TomoenaRayelle_

_**Chapter Two: A Terrible Secret**_

It's been an hour or two since Tenten ran into the village for some unexplained purpose. The heavy storm just ended and the rain has taken up a slightly softer way of falling a couple of minutes ago, so I decide to go look for her, make sure she got home okay. It would have been senseless to search for her under the weight of the rain a half-hour ago.

I enter the village and turn the first corner. I follow the path that led to Tenten's home last time. My tired mind all of a sudden comes up with an unlikely possibility. _What if she didn't make it home?_

I break into a run. _What if she got hurt on the way? She could be in trouble! _I shake my head. That would never happen to the Tenten I know! Then again, it **is** dangerous in Konohagakure at night.

_What am I doing?! There's no proof __**anything**__ bad happened to her! _I kept telling myself, but my legs wouldn't listen. I found myself sprinting as fast as I could, cutting corners and leaping over obstacles of all sorts like closed merchant stalls, sleeping guard dogs and road blocks.

As I skidded to turn on the before-last road, I spot a figure, on the side of the path.

My heart sank. There, sprawled on the ground, soaked to the skin, lies Tenten. The first reaction I have is to rush to her and wrap her up in the extra jacket I have on. Then I pick her up and find a slight overhang that can protect us from the merciless downpour. Her bangs stick to her forehead, but as I brush them away, my fingers feel very warm. I place the back of my hand on her forehead, but have to retrieve them quickly. It's so hot! A fever so high can't be good.

Where do I bring her? The hospital? No, it's at the other end of the village. But, I do know one place where I can get treatment at the exact same level.

"Sorry to impose something like this on you so late." I'm sitting in the corner of a large bedroom. Infront of me, at the **other** corner of the room, is Tenten, sleeping soundly under many blankets.

"Oh it isn't..." she yawns, "... any trouble, Neji-kun. A fever like this is quite serious." explains Haruno Sakura.

Sakura and I have been friends for a while, ever since she healed me many years ago after a mission gone wrong. Had it not been for her first aid, I probably wouldn't be here. Not that we talk much, but we always know that we won't be uncomfortable if we ask favors from each other. Although I have a feeling she doesn't enjoy being woken up at one in the morning by a teenager holding an unconscious girl infront of her apartment door. Nevertheless, she helps those in need.

"So, how, when, where and why?" she asks in a back-to-business voice.

How am I supposed to explain that? "Uh... I just found her like that on my way home from training?" Obviously Sakura knows I'm not trying very hard.

"Okay then... during the day, did she show any odd symptoms?" she tries again.

_Well, she __**was**__ being happy, then all of a second depressed and secretive. Moody. Do those count? _"She seemed rather tired this evening." I offer. Sakura ponders this for a while. Her eyes come back into focus and she walks towards the bed where Tenten lay motionless.

Sakura proceeds to examine Tenten. She runs her chakra-enveloped hands over Tenten's listless body.

"What are you looking for?" I ask her out of the blue. Funny how I seem so talkative today...

"Well, if Tenten has any rashes, it could serve as another symptom." she explained while her eyes scanned Tenten's arms and shoulders. She turned her over on her side. "If she has any cuts, it could mean the fever was caused by an infection or..." Sakura lifts the back of Tenten's shirt and goes to check for any damage, when she suddenly freezes, her hand still hovering above Tenten.

Infection or what? What's going on? I look up at Sakura to see her, eyes wide, gaping at something on Tenten's back. I rush to her side, but wish I hadn't.

I feel my stomack lurch.

My eyes follow one dark red line on Tenten's back, then I gape at small burn marks on her shoulders and lower back. What particularly disturbed me were the hundred small, deep stab wounds scattered everywhere on her skin. Sakura removed something from one of the bigger ones. It was a big piece of shattered glass.

"Oh my..." whispered Sakura. She set Tenten back down gently and folded over the bottoms of Tenten's pants until they were above her knees. She then turned Tenten over again to see that there were similar wounds all on the back of her legs, but mysterious enough, there weren't any wounds below where Tenten's pants normally would stop.

_How convenient_...

"Sakura, what does this mean?" I asked in a cold tone. Sakura looked at me with tear-filled eyes. "There's a big chance... that Tenten is hurting herself this way..." Her voice was unstable.

No way! Tenten wouldn't do that! It can't be... it can't be...

_**Can it?**_

The house is too merry tonight.

It was last night that we saw those terrible scars, and I'm still feeling queasy.

Of course, tonight is Hinata's sixteenth birthday. And of course, I totally forgot. But luckily, Hanabi had also forgotten so I had to accompany her to go get a present, hence I was saved from seeming disrespectful to the eldest child of the Main Branch family. Even so... I don't feel relieved.

I've spent all day locked up in my room. I wouldn't let **anyone** disturb me.

The sight of all those marks stayed burned into my thoughts. Tenten couldn't possibly be able to inflict those onto herself... then again, she **is** a weapons master... But then she wouldn't use something as low-class as beer bottle shards... unless she wanted to hide that it was her doing this to herself. Everything makes sense... and I wish it didn't.

I finally allowed myself to be convinced to go downstairs and join the group (well, "join"... let's say just being in the same room is enough for me.)

Ino was there, Temari was present, Chouji and Shikamaru were chatting (Chouji being right beside the snack table), Kiba was laughing with Hinata and Shino was simply standing with them. Naruto is still off training with Jiraiya-san, so he missed the party. Sakura had been invited too, but she stayed home. I'm pretty sure she wouldn't leave Tenten behind. After all, she still hadn't waken up yet.

"Neji-nii-san?"

I looked to the side. Hanabi's pale eyes stared back at me. "Neji-nii-san, where's Tenten? A week ago she said she'd show me how to handle a katana on Nee-chan's birthday." she complained, pouting a little bit.

"Hanabi-sama, you're eleven years old, please don't pout at me like that." I say bluntly. Hanabi reddens a little, but then looks back up at me. "So, where is she?" she asks again. I can't lie to her, she'll know immediately because of our Bloodline limit.

"She's with Sakura and she wasn't feeling well enough to come." Well, it isn't a lie, right? Hanabi looks at me a little longer, but finally sighs and decides it isn't worth it. Smart kid.

The party rolls on; Hinata receives her gifts, I decline all invitations to dance, Hanabi puts on a demonstration show of her skills and Hiashi-sama gives a long talk on how he's "so proud of his little girl and always has been". I notice Hinata looking shameful and timid. She has a hard time believing it. If Hiashi thinks he's making amends after so many years of reproval and criticism, he is sadly mistaken.

Later on, when Hinata is feeling better, she comes up to me. "Neji-nii-san, S-Sakura-chan and Tenten-chan do not s-seem to be here? D-Did I do s-something to of-offend them?" she asked in a high-pitched, worried voice.

I'm about to tell her what I told Hanabi, but then I think against it. Hinata is a medic-nin in training and is a very close friend of Sakura's and Tenten's. She would find out one day or another. I can also trust her to keep a secret. "Hinata-san, could I talk to you about that later on, when everyone is gone?" I ask her. She pales. She probably thinks she really **did** offend them. "It's not for the reason you think." I reassure her, before turning away and walking out to the gardens.

Hinata and I sat in the garden on a bench among Azalia bushes. Hinata looks pale, her mouth slightly parted and her lower lip trembling. I'm sitting straight, facing forwards, ignoring the sight of her horror and shock, trying to avoid reacting like that myself.

"T-Tenten-chan is... a... a m-masochist? I... It's so... h-hard to believe..." she managed to say. I close my eyes, repressing my own feelings regarding the issues. Unpleasant feelings. I was waiting for tears to flow and the sound of choked sobs, but none came from her. She looked bluntly at her feet, her eyes gleaming with unshed tears. "I knew it... " she whispered softly. _Knew what? _I was about to ask her until she spoke first.

"S-something... just wasn't right when I w-was with Tenten-chan." she said sadly. A tear fell from her eyes. "She always s-seemed like she was hiding something... i-important... from me. I can always t-tell when she talks to m-me. She wants to t-tell me something, but she's hiding it a-away, as if she's ashamed of it."

I ponder this for a while. Why didn't I notice it at all?

"I... I don't know if it's b-because of Byakugan that I noticed... but I d-doubt it because Sakura seemed to have noticed as well. We were both so worried..." she explained, her hands shaking slightly on her lap. She couldn't hold back her sobs anymore and broke down.

I nodded. My Byakugan is more developped than Hinata's, but hers can detect feelings better than I can.

Hinata is stronger in that point.

I need practice.

"Neji-nii-san! Someone's here for you!" calls out Hanabi from the basement. I'm in a grumpy mood. My clock reads midnight. What's Hanabi doing up at midnight anyway?

I slowly get up and make my way to my room door. The night before burned me out and I fell asleep in my clothes, so I wasn't ashamed of going to the door. All that disturbed me was that I was dreaming of that girl again and I felt really close to finding out who she was. Trust my unlucky lifestyle to barge in on me whenever it feels like it.

"Hurry up, Neji-nii-san!" calls out Hanabi. I can picture her with her hands on her hips and tapping her foot impatiently. That kid seems **so** calm when she's with her father, but she really **is** obnoxious. I made my way down to the front door and looked up to our unexpected quest.

Bundled up in a travelling cloak and a grave expression on her face, Sakura looked at me with wide pleading eyes. Her hair was plastered to her face because of the heavy rain pouring down on her, giving her a helpless look. I can already feel the dread build up inside of me.

"You need to come with me, Neji-kun." she said in a rushed, worried tone.

"What's going on?" I ask solemnly. Somehow, I don't want to know. Hanabi stood between us, looking from Sakura to me and back again.

"It's Tenten."

Without another word, Sakura and I disappear into the night, leaving my young cousin behind, dumbstruck and curious.


	3. Chapter Three: Family Ties

**Disclaimer: Naruto series and characters belong to Masashi Kishimoto. The plot, though, is mine.**

_**That Face in my Dreams**_

_TomoenaRayelle_

_**Chapter Three: Meeting Her Father**_

I could my heartbeat even if the roar of the rain covered most sounds that night. Sakura's hoodless cloak flapped noisily behind her as I followed her through the maze of Konoha. She hadn't said anything after we had rushed out into the streets. What could be going on with Tenten that Sakura couldn't handle alone?

It didn't help the situation much that the Hyuuga estate is located is in the West of Konohagakure whereas Sakura's appartment is far East. The rain also made it hard to see where we were going.

_Hmm, running in the rain. Why does it feel familiar? _I joked to myself. But even **that** wouldn't lighten the fear and worry that had come to creep up in the back of my mind upon seeing Sakura looking so desperate. Sakura was generally known as an independant kunoichi and a highly skilled medic and social-worker.

--

We cross the final intersection and run up the stairs to her appartment. She bursts through the door and leads me to the bedroom at the far end of the hall. She enters before me and rushes to Tenten's side.

I was completely right to be worried.

Tenten sat staring wide-eyed at the opposite wall. Her eyes were bleak and glazed over, as if her mind wasn't in this universe anymore. She was violently shaking and tears were streaming down her face in a constant line, never seeming to stop. Her voice emitted the faintest squeak as if she was too terrified to scream. Clutching the blankets tightly, her knuckles were white and shaking.

"She woke up just two hours ago and she's been like this ever since. It's like she can't see me or hear anything I say. Her heartbeat's racing at a dangerous speed, her fever's spiked once again and she's sweating like a human sprinkler. I need you to see if you can use your Byakugan to find out what's going on. You can tell alot of things by looking in people's eyes, right?" asked Sakura, sounding exhausted and distressed.

I nodded and activated my bloodline limit. Concentrating on Tenten's blank eyes, I first notice how stress combined with fear is confusing her chakra system. I decipher her pupil movements to be results of painful memories and paranoia.

"She's remembering something painful. Something she's afraid of and is running away from." I state after a few minutes of observing.

Sakura pondered this for a moment. I focus all my chakra into my eyes and study the various feelings expressed in Tenten's eyes and face. Terror and shame and... something else... what could it be?

Dizziness overtakes me and I disactivate my Byakugan. Lack of sleep and excessive chakra use in my eyes make me tired and weak. I don't normally spend so much energy in simply observing emotions. That, and I didn't get any sleep for the past two days.

A lone teardrop falls from Tenten's eyes, unnoticed by the medic-nin beside her on the opposite side. I blink. It's the first time I see Tenten cry, even if it's only a bit.

"I'll make something for Tenten. She hasn't eaten for a couple days." announced Sakura softly, leaving the room.

Another tear overflowed from Tenten's seemingly dry eyes, followed by a thin stream of several more. Her breath came in raspy, choked gasps. I walk closer with a tissue I had grabbed from the bedside table and I start to dry away the salty water on her face. I don't know how many tissues I used, but her eyes were watering so much I wondered if I would run out!

I sat down on the bed, beside her but at a comfortable distance, wiping her unblinking eyes.

All of a sudden, Tenten lets out a loud wail and burries her head into my shirt, clutching to me as hard as she had been clutching the covers a little while ago. Her hushed crying turns into desperate sobs of fear and the need for comfort. Just the sight was enough to make someone want to cry. I tried calming her down, but she just tightens her grip on my shirt.

--

Sakura came bursting in at the sound of her scream. Taking in the sight, she immediately tried to help me console her. When that failed, she tried prying Tenten off of me, but that proved even more difficult. So tight was her death grip I thought I'd have bruises for weeks.

"I'll have to tranquilize her, I don't think she wants to let go any time soon!" yelled Sakura over the sound of Tenten's wailing. She pulled out a First Aid kit and extracted a seringe containing a clear liquid. With great care, she injected the medicine into Tenten's thigh, making her tense, then collapse onto me. I set her back down on the bed and replaced all of the blankets over her.

Sakura sighed and pressed a hand to her forehead. "Still feverish. You okay there, Neji-kun?" she asked. I rubbed the places on my chest that had begun to hurt. Sakura handed me a cloth to dry up spots of moisture that Tenten had so thoughtfully cried on me.

"I'll live." I said simply.

I spent the rest of the night discussing with Sakura the different situations that could have led to both the injuries and the un-Tenten-like behaviour. We came to the same conclusion:

When she wakes up, we'll force her to tell us.

Just as I was walking through the door, Sakura's phone rang.

"Hello?" she asked in a soft voice. "Oh, Tsunade-shishou... what?! I... I'll be right there." Eyes wide and mouth slightly agape, she dropped the receiver into place.

"We've got to go to Tsunade-shishou's office, pronto." Sakura grabbed her coat and pulled me out the door and into the still-dark streets. The position of the moon suggested that we were around four o'clock in the morning. The heavy rain had died down to a slight drizzle, but Sakura kept pulling me into puddles, hence, I was soaked anyway.

--

Sakura stops at the door and knocks. A tired _"Come in"_ gave her permission to enter. She walked in a few steps and I followed. We both bowed and looked up. A moustached man with a twisted, unpleasant face stood infront of Tsunade-sama's desk, scrutinizing us as we made our way to the Hokage's desk. He looked tough with his burly arms crossed over his chest arrogantly. "You called a couple of kids?" he mutters in his scruffy voice.

I don't even know this man's name, but I already hate him.

"You called, Tsunade-shishou?" asks Sakura politely, ignoring the rudeness coming from the stranger

"Yes. Sakura, this is Runoki Sanato-san, a very important figure among the P.I.D." Tsunade explains. Her voice was filled with authority, but there was a hint of exhaustion in her voice.

The P.I.D... Police Investigation Department. Very important indeed. What would he want with us?

"Runoki-san, this is Sakura, a very good assistant of mine." she introduces. The man squints at me.

"Who's the twerp?" he sneered.

I could feel my anger rising to boiling point but kept myself in check out of respect and not wanting to disgrace Tsunade-sama.

"This is Hyuuga Neji, one of our respected Jounin that could wipe out all of your squads in less than five minutes." retorts Tsunade. Obviously, this Runoki Sanato was ticking her off as well. The man in question just twisted his face even more and with an audible "Tch", turns his head in the other direction.

"Back to the point," begins the Fifth, her manacing eyes still lingering on the hateful man. "Runoki-san has come here with a request."

She stared at the man and jerked her head to the door. He reluctantly got the message, leaving the room while muttering insults under his breath. He slammed the door behind him and his footsteps resounded in the empty hallway. Once Tsunade was sure he was gone, she sighed and looked at us with urgent eyes.

"Have you seen Tenten anywhere?" she asks quickly. Sakura and I both cringe. Sakura looks at me, searching for the permission to tell her master about her new patient. I think about it a moment, then speak up.

"Why does **he** want to know?" I ask, suggesting my dislike of that particular person.

"I don't like him either, Neji, but we have to be on his good side to avoid conflict." she sighs. "Anyhow, apparently Tenten's gone missing."

"That's half true." whispered Sakura. I lowered my eyes. Tenten wasn't exactly Tenten right now.

Tsunade rubbed her temples and looked at us with sad eyes. "You may not know this, but Runoki Sanato is Tenten's father." she explains

Sakura gasps. I stare.

"Well, stepfather more precisely." she corrects.

Sakura and I relax a little bit, but there's still a heavy tension in the room. "She never talks to us about her family. Does she have a mother, then?" asks Sakura hopefully. Tsunade shakes her head and slumps back in her chair.

"Tenten's biological father died three days after she was born. Her mother re-married but mysteriously died a year later. Because her stepfather had too much work to do to look after a young girl, Tenten was living with her grandmother. But she also died recently so Sanato-san had to take her in." she revealed.

Sakura brought her finger to her lip and drifted off into her thoughts. "She's been surrounded by so many deaths... Now she has to live with that... that..." suddenly, her eyes shot open and she turned to me then to Tsunade.

"Do you know if Runoki Sanato has been known to be violent?" asked Sakura, leaning on Tsunade's desk and staring at her intensely. Tsunade scanned through a filing cabinet and pulled out a folder with the inituals R.S. on the tag. She pulled out a sheet and handed it to her.

Tsunade looked confused and I'm positive that I mirrored her expression.

With a loud "Aha!", she smacked the paper down on the desk and pulled me over to read. Tsunade leaned forward to read as well.

I read it once, but didn't quite understand so I read it out loud. "Runoki Sanato. Age, fourty-two. Smoker. Three cases of ravages in public and private establishments under the influence of alcohol as well as three cases of unexplained violence towards innocent villagers."

"What are you trying to get at, Sakura?" I ask.

"Everything falls into place, Neji! The wounds on Tenten's body, they're no mistaking it!" she exclaimed. She pounded her fist into her other hand. "Those pieces of glass we saw, they're most likely from sake glasses and those burn marks could be from cigarettes!"

Things start to connect inside my head. That man... he's doing this to her... he's hurting Tenten. Suddenly a whole new hatred for the towering man hatched in my mind.

"**What** are you talking about Sakura?" demanded the Hokage.

In a fit of excitement and fear, she explained to her teacher everything about me finding Tenten in the rain, the mysterious injuries, the odd behaviour and our new hypothesis on who the culprit is. Tsunade sat, speechless, pale and horrified. "Where is she now?" she asked in a hushed tone.

"At my apartment, not far from here." she answered. Tsunade nodded.

"I'll have Runoki under serveillance. Bring me to Tenten. I want to examine these scars myself." she said, grabbing her green coat on the back of her chair.

A sudden noise. Heavy footsteps running away from behind the door. I activate my Byakugan to see through the walls and I recognize a certain man running out of the tower and into the streets. He must have heard our conversation. He's headed to Sakura's apartment. He's an investigator so he must have every address in Konoha.

"No..." I breathe.


End file.
